Wire or rope tightener

ABSTRACT

A slightly angulated elongated body has a slotted capstan projecting from one side thereof, the slot forming two segmental legs about which the rope or wire to be tightened is wrapped or wound. Each leg has a notch formed therein adjacent the body so that spaced portions of the wire can be seated therein. At each end of the elongated body, projecting from the same side thereof as the capstan projects, is a hook having a curved surface so that the wire is automatically deflected or cammed during the tightening procedure. The hooks retain the wire taut after the tightening has been completed, and also enable the wire to be tightened in stages where there is an appreciable amount of slack. To effect the tightening, a pair of serrated tabs project from the other side of the elongated body, each tab being concavo-convex so as to provide a curved surface for the accommodation of a person&#39;&#39;s fingers during the twisting or tightening operation. The tab curvature faces in the same direction as the hook at that particular end projects, although oppositely to the capstan notch nearer thereto.

United States Patent [191 Langlie et al.

[ WIRE 0R ROPE TIGHTENER [76] Inventors: Howard Langlie; Albert T. Berg,Jr.,

both of Ellendale, Minn. 56026 [22] Filed: Sept. 27, 1973 [21] Appl.No.: 401,346

[52] U.S. Cl. 254/51, 24/71.3 [51] Int. Cl. B66f 1/00, A43c 11/00 [58]Field of Search 254/51, 161; 242/152, 153;

Primary Examiner-Othell M. Simpson Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Stuart R.Peterson [451 1 Apr. 1, 1975 [5 7] ABSTRACT A slightly angulatedelongated body has a slotted capstan projecting from one side thereof,the slot forming two segmental legs about which the rope or wire to betightened is wrapped or wound. Each leg has a notch formed thereinadjacent the body so that spaced portions of the wire can be seatedtherein. At each end of the elongated body, projecting from the sameside thereof as the capstan projects, is a hook having a curved surfaceso that the wire is automatically deflected or cammed during thetightening procedure. The hooks retain the wire taut after thetightening has been completed, and also enable the wire to be tightenedin stages where there is an appreciable amount of slack. To effect thetightening, a pair of serrated tabs project from the other side of theelongated body, each tab being concavo-convex so as to provide a curvedsurface for the accommodation of a persons fingers during the twistingor tightening operation. The tab curvature faces in the same directionas the hook at that particular end projects, although oppositely to thecapstan notch nearer thereto.

12 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures ATENTEB APR 1 I975 SHEET 1 0F 2 WIRE ORROPE TIGHTENER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relatesgenerally to rope or wire tighteners, and pertains more particularly toa one-piece tightener that will effectively tighten a variety of rope orwires that are apt to be encountered.

Tighteners of this general type have been used in the past, but possesscertain disadvantages that the present invention effectively overcomes.Generally, the prior art devices, particularly those described in thepatent literature, fail to provide a tightener that will permit a facileinitiating of the tightening procedure. Also, they are not completelysatisfactory in automatically retaining a taut condition of the wireafter the tightening has been completed. More specifically, the wire isnot properly held at the outset and considerable trouble develops as thewire is tightened, the problem also adversely affecting the finalretention of the wire in its tightened state.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A general object of the present invention is toprovide a tightening device that can be readily utilized in tightening avariety of ropes and wires that are currently in common use. Statedsomewhat differently, an aim of the invention is to enable thetightening of ropes or wires of different sizes and which are being usedfor various purposes.

Another object of the invention is to provide a tightener that willinitially retain the rope or wire in a preferred relationship so thatthe tightening procedure can progress without encountering anydifficulty from slippage or interference as the tightener is twisted.

Yet another object is to provide a tightener that is quite compact andthat can be inexpensively manufactured. In this regard, an aim of theinvention is to provide a tightener that can be molded readily from anappropriate plastic material.

Still another object is to provide a tightener having wings or tabsconfigured so that they can be conveniently grasped by a persons hand,thereby obviating the need for using any tools or implements.

A further object is to provide a tightener that will enable aconsiderable amount of slack in the wire or rope to be accommodated. Inother words, a number of turns can be made without difficulty shouldcircumstances so require.

Briefly, our invention comprises an elongated body composed of twopanels that angle slightly rearwardly. At their juncture is a slotted orsplit capstan into which the wire is initially inserted. By reason ofthe slotted configuration of the capstan, a pair of segmental legs areformed. Each leg, adjacent the elongated body, has a notch therein, thenotches facing in opposite directions, so that spaced portions orsections of the rope or wire to be tightened can be initially seated,and which remain seated, in the notches, thereby obviating the tendencyfor the rope or wire to slip outwardly along the capstan away from thebody. At each end of the body is a hook formed integrally with the body,the hooks facing not only in opposite directions but also in oppositedirections with respect to the notch nearer thereto. The hooks areformed with curved surfaces so that the rope or wire is automaticallycammed or deflected during the tightening operation, yet when thetightening has been completed (or temporarily to allow the user to get anew grip without any unwinding of a partially tightened wire) the wireor rope will then automatically be engaged by the hooks so as to preventany unwinding of the tightened wire. A pair of wings or tabs extend fromthe opposite side of the elongated body, each being concavo-convex so asto provide a curved surface facing in the same direction as the hooknearer thereto. Serrations extend in a generally parallel direction tothe body so as to further facilitate the grasping of the wings or tabsby a persons hand, thus enabling the tightener to be twisted withoutresort to any tools or implements.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of ourtightener as it is being advanced toward a wire to be tightened, thewire being only partially received in the capstans slot so as to exposeto view a notch that would otherwise not be clearly visible;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of our tightener after the wire has beenfully received in the slotted capstan and after the device has beenrotated from the position shown in FIG. 1 in the process of tighteningthe wire;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view corresponding to FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken in the direction of line 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken in the direction of line 55 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken in the direction of line 6-6 of FIG. 3,and

FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating our device after the wire ofFIG. 2 has been fully tightened, the view representing a rotationthrough an additional angle of from its position of FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to FIG. 1, therope or wire to be tightened has been given the reference numeral 10.For the sake of description, it will be assumed that the member 10constitutes a single strand of electric fence wire. It will berecognized that the gauge of electric fence wires will vary. Also,frequently two or three strands will be wound together to constitute thesingle conductor, the strands sometimes being in the form ofconventional barbed wire. It will be appreciated, however, that ourinvention is susceptible to tightening various sizes of wires, as wellas different types of rope that might be encountered, such as, forexample, tent ropes or clotheslines.

The wire or rope tightener exemplifying our invention has beendesignated in its entirety by the reference numeral 12. As thedescription progresses, it will be recognized that the tightener 12 canreadily be structured as a one-piece unit. In this regard, a plasticmaterial, such as nylon has been found quite suitable, nylon permittingthe easy molding of the device in the pictured form.

The tightener 12 comprises a body 14 composed of rectangular panels 16aand 16b. Close inspection of FIG. 3 will reveal that these panels 16a,16b angle slightly toward the rear for a purpose presently to be mademanifest.

Projecting forwardly from the body 14, namely the region where thepanels 16a, 16b are integrally joined, is a capstan 18 having a slot 20therein which forms segmental legs 22a and 22b. It will be understoodthat the width of the slot 20 is sufficient to accommodate therein themaximum size of the most common ropes or wires that are apt to requiretightening; experience has shown that a slot having a quarter inch widthis sufficient for most of the situations that will be encountered. Aportion of the wire 10 is to be wound about the capstan 18, morespecifically its segmental legs 22a and 22b, so there are provided atthe free ends of the legs 22a and 22b segmental retention flanges 24a,24b, these retention flanges enabling either a small or large number ofturns of wire 10 to be wrapped about the capstan 18.

At this time, attention is directed to a pair of oppositely facing hooks28a and 28b, these hooks being integrally carried adjacent the remoteend portions of the panels 16a, 16b. Not only do the hooks 28a, 28b facein opposite directions, but the hook 28a faces in an opposite directionfrom the notch 26a and the hook 28b oppositely from the notch 26b. Thefunction of the hooks 28a, 28b is to prevent the wire from unwindingafter it has been tightened. Although not completely understandable atthis stage of the description, the hooks 28a, 28b each have a curvedsurface 30 thereon which acts as a cam against the wire 10 during thetightening procedure.

In order to enable the device 12 to be rotated or twisted, there arerearwardly extending wings or tabs 32a, 32b molded on the rear sides ofthe panels 16a, 16b, there being a V-shaped notch 32 between the tabs32a, 32b. The tabs 32a, 32b have longitudinally directed serrations 34molded on their oppositely facing sides. As can be best discerned fromFIGS. 4 and 5, the tabs 32a and 32b are concavo-convex.

The serrations 34, together with the curvature derived from theconcavo-convex configuration mentioned immediately above, enable theuser to grasp firmly the device 12 in the fashion illustrated in FIG. 1.In this regard, a persons hand has been labeled 36, and it will be notedthat his thumb 38 is placed against one side of the tab 32a and hisindex finger 40 against the opposite side thereof. In order to providethe requisite twisting action, the middle finger 42 (along with hisother fingers) is placed on the side of the tab 32b remote from theviewer. In this way, when the device 12 is advanced toward the viewer inthe direction of the wire 10, as is portrayed in FIG. 1, the wire 10simply enters the slot 20, relatively speaking.

When fully received in the slot 20, the device 12 is rotated or twistedfrom the vertical position of FIG. 1 to the horizontal position shown inFIG. 2, this being through an angle of 90 in a counterclockwisedirection (as seen by the viewer; clockwise as seen by the user). Thewire 10 is initially seated in the notches 26a and 26b formed in thesegmental legs 22 adjacent their juncture with the panels 16a and 16b.The notches 26a, 26b thus hold the seated wire 10 in a proximalrelationship with the body 14, namely the forward faces of the panels16a and 16b. The notches 26a, 26b are of appreciable importance in theuse of our invention, for they assure that the wire 10 is retained atthe base of the capstan 18 and that it does not slip or slide forwardlyalong the segmental legs 22a, 22b, which situation would not onlyinterfere with the tightening but the subsequent retention of the wireafter it is tightened. Of course, if a relatively large number of turnsare necessary to completely tighten the wire 10, that is take up theslack therein, the turns progressively work out toward the segmentalflanges 24a, 24b, but the wire remains anchored, as achieved initially,adjacent the body 14 thereby facilitating the tightening of the wire, asshould be evident.

Assuming that there is a sufficient amount of slack in the wire 10 torequire a rotation of the device into the position depicted in FIG. 7,the user, while still grasping the wings or tabs 32a, 32b rotates thedevice through to reach the position illustrated in FIG. 7. It will nowbe recognized that the curved surfaces 30 on the hooks 28a, 28b bear orcam against the wire during the tightening procedure. Such caming can beseen from the right side of FIG. 2, where the curved surface 30 on thehook 28a is bearing against a portion of the wire 10, it beingrecognized that the device 12 is being twisted or rotated in acounterclockwise direction (as seen by the viewer) in this particularFIGURE. In other words, the curved surface 30 on the hook 28a is movingupwardly in order to reach the 180 relationship illustrated in FIG. 7.Owing to the length of wire between each segmental leg 22a, 22b, and thehooks 28a, 28b, respectively, the length of wire is sufficient so as topermit flexing by the curved surfaces 30 without dislodging the wirefrom the notches 26a, 28b. Without the notches 26a, 28b, there would bea shifting of the wire outwardly or toward the viewer when rotating ortwisting the device 12 to tighten the wire 10. The curved surfaces 30,therefore, minimize the interference that one experiences when rotatingthe device in the manner just described. The obtuse angulation of thepanels 16a, 16b also help.

For the sake of description, it will be assumed that when the tightener12 has been rotated into the position in which it appears in FIG. 7 thatall of the slack has been removed from the stretch of wire 10, then theuser simply relaxes his grip on the device, permitting the device torotate slightly in a reverse or clockwise direction, the wire 10automatically flexing into the hooks 28a and 28b. Rotation through onlya very small reverse angle occurs, so virtually none of the originalslack returns. Once having permitted the hooks 28a, 28b to engage thewire 10 as pictured in FIG. 7, the user simply leaves the device 12without further attention and with the assurance that the tightened wirewill remain taut. If further tightening is needed, the user can alwaysrely on the hooks 28a, 28b to hold the wire in a partially tightenedstate, while he gets a new grip in preparation for the next twist.

It should be appreciated that the disposition of the wings or tabs 32a,32b at radial locations from the segmental legs 22a, 22b of the capstan18 affords a decided mechanical advantage in wrapping the wire about thecapstan 18. The curvature of the tabs 32a, 32b, coupled with theserrations 34, permit a firm grip of the device 12 to be made andenables a relatively high degree of torque to be applied against thetabs when manually twisting the device 12 without the likelihood of theusers fingers slipping off. Consequently, any wire or rope of a sizethat can be received in the slot 20 can be tightened effectively (instages if need be) when utilizing our tightening device 12.

We claim:

1. A one-piece plastic rope or wire tightener comprising an elongatedpanel body having upper and lower edges, a slotted generally cylindricalcapstan projecting integrally from one side of said body, a firstintegral hook extending along the upper edge of said panel body towardsaid capstan from one end of said panel body, said first hook having afirst portion projecting outwardly from said body and a second portioninitially curving downwardly from said first portion and then extendingin a generally parallel relation with respect to said panel body, asecond integral hook extending along the lower edge of said panel bodytoward said capstan, said second hook having a first portion projectingoutwardly from said body and a second portion initially curving upwardlyfrom the first portion of said second hook and then extending in agenerally parallel relation with respect to said panel body, said hooksterminating in a spaced relationship with respect to said capstan, andrespective means adjacent the ends of said body projecting integrallyfrom the other side of said body for twisting said body in order to wrapa portion of the wire or rope to be tightened about said capstan.

2. A tightener in accordance with claim 1 in which said respective meansincludes a pair of spaced tabs for grasping by a persons hand to effecta twisting of said body but terminating in a spaced relationship in theregion of said capstan, the spaced relationship of said tabs being lessthan that of said hooks.

3. A tightener in accordance with claim 2 in which said capstan isprovided with at least one notch adjacent said body for seating the ropeor wire to be tightened.

4. A tightener in accordance with claim 2 in which said tabs extend fromsaid panel body intermediate its said upper and lower edges and areconcavo-convex over their entire length, the concave side in eachinstance facing in the same direction as the hook nearer thereto faces.

5. A tightener in accordance with claim 4 in which each hook has acurved surface for camming against the rope or wire when said body istwisted.

6. A tightener in accordance with claim 4 in which said tabs haveserrations formed thereon which extend in substantially parallelism withsaid body over the entire length thereof.

8. A tightener in accordance with claim 7 in which the plastic is nylon.

9. A one-piece plastic rope or wire tightener comprising an elongatedbody composed of generally rectangular panels forming an obtuse anglewith respect to each other, a generally cylindrical capstan projectingintegrally along an axis extending perpendicularly from one side of saidbody where said panels are integrally joined, said capstan having a slottherein which forms segmental legs, each leg having a notch at the endthereof adjacent said body for seating portions of the rope or wire tobe tightened and a flange at the end thereof remote from said body forretaining a number of turns of rope on said capstan, the notch in oneleg facing in one direction and the notch in the other leg facing in anopposite direction, an elongated hook on each panel located at the endthereof remote from said capstan and extending toward said capstan overa given length of said body, said hooks facing in opposite directionswith respect to the notches that they are nearer to and having portionsextending generally parallel to said elongated body, and wings or tabsprojecting from the opposite side of said body from the ends of saidbody through a greater length than the length of the hook it isassociated with for grasping by a persons hand so as to twist saidcapstan to tighten a rope or wire that has been inserted into said slotsand which is seated in said notches, said wings or tabs residinggenerally in a plane which includes said capstan axis.

10. A tightener in accordance with claim 9 in which said hooks areformed with curved portions extending throughout their length forcamming against the rope or wire during the tightening procedure inpermitting said portions to be retained in said hooks after the rope orwire has been tightened around the capstan.

11. A tightener in accordance with claim 10 in which said tabs areslightly curved, the tab adjacent one hook being curved in the directionthat said hook faces and the tab adjacent the other hook being curved inthe direction that said other hook faces.

12. A tightener in accordance with claim 11 in which said plasticmaterial is molded nylon.

1. A one-piece plastic rope or wire tightener comprising an elongatedpanel body having upper and lower edges, a slotted generally cylindricalcapstan projecting integrally from one side of said body, a firstintegral hook extending along the upper edge of said panel body towardsaid capstan from one end of said panel body, said first hook having afirst portion projecting outwardly from said body and a second portioninitially curving downwardly froM said first portion and then extendingin a generally parallel relation with respect to said panel body, asecond integral hook extending along the lower edge of said panel bodytoward said capstan, said second hook having a first portion projectingoutwardly from said body and a second portion initially curving upwardlyfrom the first portion of said second hook and then extending in agenerally parallel relation with respect to said panel body, said hooksterminating in a spaced relationship with respect to said capstan, andrespective means adjacent the ends of said body projecting integrallyfrom the other side of said body for twisting said body in order to wrapa portion of the wire or rope to be tightened about said capstan.
 2. Atightener in accordance with claim 1 in which said respective meansincludes a pair of spaced tabs for grasping by a person''s hand toeffect a twisting of said body but terminating in a spaced relationshipin the region of said capstan, the spaced relationship of said tabsbeing less than that of said hooks.
 3. A tightener in accordance withclaim 2 in which said capstan is provided with at least one notchadjacent said body for seating the rope or wire to be tightened.
 4. Atightener in accordance with claim 2 in which said tabs extend from saidpanel body intermediate its said upper and lower edges and areconcavo-convex over their entire length, the concave side in eachinstance facing in the same direction as the hook nearer thereto faces.5. A tightener in accordance with claim 4 in which each hook has acurved surface for camming against the rope or wire when said body istwisted.
 6. A tightener in accordance with claim 4 in which said tabshave serrations formed thereon which extend in substantially parallelismwith said body over the entire length thereof.
 7. A tightener inaccordance with claim 6 in which said body angles slightly away fromsaid capstan.
 8. A tightener in accordance with claim 7 in which theplastic is nylon.
 9. A one-piece plastic rope or wire tightenercomprising an elongated body composed of generally rectangular panelsforming an obtuse angle with respect to each other, a generallycylindrical capstan projecting integrally along an axis extendingperpendicularly from one side of said body where said panels areintegrally joined, said capstan having a slot therein which formssegmental legs, each leg having a notch at the end thereof adjacent saidbody for seating portions of the rope or wire to be tightened and aflange at the end thereof remote from said body for retaining a numberof turns of rope on said capstan, the notch in one leg facing in onedirection and the notch in the other leg facing in an oppositedirection, an elongated hook on each panel located at the end thereofremote from said capstan and extending toward said capstan over a givenlength of said body, said hooks facing in opposite directions withrespect to the notches that they are nearer to and having portionsextending generally parallel to said elongated body, and wings or tabsprojecting from the opposite side of said body from the ends of saidbody through a greater length than the length of the hook it isassociated with for grasping by a person''s hand so as to twist saidcapstan to tighten a rope or wire that has been inserted into said slotsand which is seated in said notches, said wings or tabs residinggenerally in a plane which includes said capstan axis.
 10. A tightenerin accordance with claim 9 in which said hooks are formed with curvedportions extending throughout their length for camming against the ropeor wire during the tightening procedure in permitting said portions tobe retained in said hooks after the rope or wire has been tightenedaround the capstan.
 11. A tightener in accordance with claim 10 in whichsaid tabs are slightly curved, the tab adjacent one hook being curved inthe direction that said hook faces and the tab adjacent the other hookbeing curved in the directioN that said other hook faces.
 12. Atightener in accordance with claim 11 in which said plastic material ismolded nylon.